Login required to started new threads

Login required to post replies

Prev Next
Re: Premier Tactical [dkennison] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
 A few thoughts.

Happy to report that our customer's bikes are all shipping out on Monday via Fed X. The bikes look fantastic. We are very happy to have received great ride reports from local athletes that have already been out on the bike as well as friend that always say good things about the bike.

I thought it might be interesting to do a public “Lessons Learned” message with respect to our first shipment.

Before I do that I need to thank all the athletes that were willing to take a chance on a new company. Yes, the price was right but still $5,500 for a new bike is a lot of money. We will support you – thank you.

I set up the business model like Porsche or Mercedes. So it’s hard to tell the models year to year. You will always be able to up grade a Tactical to the newest model for a very low cost and for a very long time. Any new upgrade will be available at a significantly reduced cost to first shipment purchasers.

Those initial upgrades will include Ceramic BB and Ceramic rear Mech. pulleys.

There are a few things that I will change and up-grade for our first time customers (at no charge) and will ensure better products for the next shipment.

1. The rear storage fits great. The lid is too tight. I broke the release tabs myself trying to get it off – I have re-designed the system and will send new ones (no charge) in about 30 days.

2. The rear storage it self needs to be attached without a lot of force. There are expansion tabs inside so it fits really nice with the frame. I think a few people will be a bit forceful so we will have to send new storage parts if they get aggressive while attaching. Please be gentle.

3. The screws that hold the rear storage on are shorter than regular bottle screws so they don’t hurt the seat post. We will have to make sure customers now and in re-sale understand this.

4. On this first model the over all cockpit length adjustment is difficult in that the extension tube shifter wires which are attached to the shifters run though the base bar to the junction box. This makes that particular adjustment difficult. In the next shipment we will add 200 mm of wire from the junction box and the new wire plugs into the shifters so changes will be easy – this will make cockpit adjustment a breeze. We had hoped that Shimano would have had these available for the first shipment but they did not.

The bike is really nice, easy to adjust and super fast. I think our customers will be really happy with their purchase.

Dan Kennison

facebook: @triPremierBike
http://www.PremierBike.com
http://www.PositionOneSports.com
Last edited by: dkennison: Aug 12, 17 16:34
Quote Reply
Re: Premier Tactical [dkennison] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
Congrats on the early success! As a follower of your journey, I'm really impressed with the way you have, and are handling this venture. What a great feeling it must be for the early adopters of your brand, to know they will be well looked after... I'm sure there's more than a few people now wishing they were among them!
Quote Reply
Re: Premier Tactical [JBell] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
Did anyone else receive the bikes yet? I'm curious about hearing more reviews
Quote Reply
Re: Premier Tactical [dkennison] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
when will that be? Thx
Quote Reply
Re: Premier Tactical [turdburgler] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
I'm supposed to get mine on Tuesday the 22nd. I'll try and do an unboxing and review as soon as possible. I will say that Dan has been excellent as far as customer service so far. I wrecked my 10 year old Transition Pro at IM Frankfurt and needed a new one. The problem is that I am currently stationed in Turkey and getting a bike out here is difficult (I'd rather not buy something in Europe and pay Euros, I don't make that much).

I'm back in the US on R&R next week for a short time. Dan has been incredible working with me to get a bike out during the short time while I'm in the US. I can't wait to get it out on the road.
Quote Reply
Re: Premier Tactical [dkennison] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
Someone is going to undoubtedly heckle me for this (weight doesn't matter that much, ya ya ya I know), but Dan, do you have an idea on the weight of this bike? Say a size medium directly out of the box with everything it comes with (deep front, disc, power meter, Ultegra Di2). The stripped down version that krikiker posted looks incredibly light.
Quote Reply
Re: Premier Tactical [APKTRI] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
I don't have a medium in front of me but I have a small built up this morning so I can weigh that.

Small frame, fully dressed - Disk, 88 front w quick releases, rear storage, 60 mm spacers, stock saddle, front brake cover, BB cover, optimized chain (trimmed to fit -4 links), empty BTA w cage mount, power meter, seat tube and down tube bolts but no cages, bento bolts but no bento, GP 4000II w/tubes = 20.25 Lbs.

Dan Kennison

facebook: @triPremierBike
http://www.PremierBike.com
http://www.PositionOneSports.com
Quote Reply
Re: Premier Tactical [dkennison] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
Awesome! Thanks, Dan.
Quote Reply
Re: Premier Tactical [APKTRI] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
I have a large that I just weighed:
-88/Disc
-Empty flat kit storage
-XLab Carbon cage
-Dura-Ace pedals
-Dash (stock) saddle
-All bolts
-GP4000S II w/ butyl tubes

22.0 lbs

More pictures to follow today.
Quote Reply
Re: Premier Tactical [JTolandTRI] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
Hi All,

Like many of you I've been following along in the Premier Tactical development. I was lucky enough to meet Dan down at the Escape the Cape Triathlon earlier this summer. Of course the topic of conversation was the Tactical and in talking we decided there was value to had by both of us in a partnership. I am now riding aboard a Tactical based out of Boulder, CO and would be happy to field any question (that Dan doesn't beat me to!) and show off the bike to any locals or those racing the collegiate circuit (MCTC and Nationals). I've included a picture below and a longer first ride impressions and more pictures will follow.


Quote Reply
Re: Premier Tactical [APKTRI] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
I agree with you 100%. Wisconsin, Kona will hurt you the heavier your bike weights. Building mine up right now expecting it to go in the 19 's ready to race. Will post when done.
Quote Reply
Re: Premier Tactical [JTolandTRI] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
IIRC you rode a speed concert prior. Some comparisons between the two in terms of fit, adjustments, handling, ride quality, braking, etc would be interesting.

Matt
Quote Reply
Re: Premier Tactical [JTolandTRI] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
My friend received his yesterday and I spent time with him while he assembled it. It is a stunning bike. I think he ended up having an issue with the battery but he said it wasn't anything major. I'm going to test ride it this weekend hopefully and I will post my thoughts. I encouraged him to join the forum and post as well. He is a bigwig at a manufacturing/robotics firm who has spent a lot of time in nearly every high-end bike/aerospace/biomedical facility known to man and he seems very smitten with this bike.
Quote Reply
Re: Premier Tactical [turdburgler] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
It seems that Shimano needed to do a firmware upgrade on a few of the "the batteries???" never heard of that before. Anyway I spent a lot of time on the phone at 3 am talking to Taiwan OEM Rep.

They said that by the time Shimano shipped to the assembler, the bikes were assemble and the ocean freight time - if a battery went below 20% in some cases it goes into sleep mode (what ever that is). Sounds like a story to me but they got me to purchase a SMPCE1. So I'm doing what they call a component direct firmware something or another on a few batteries.

Dan Kennison

facebook: @triPremierBike
http://www.PremierBike.com
http://www.PositionOneSports.com
Quote Reply
Re: Premier Tactical [Pun_Times] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
Matt,

Yes, I did ride a Speed Concept prior. I'm racing out the door for a flight home to Seattle, but hoping to have some time at the airport to put together a post with my thoughts on the bike. Knocked out 4000ft of climbing today up Left Hand Canyon here in Boulder. I was very pleased with the handling and stability both headed up and down.
Quote Reply
Re: Premier Tactical [Pun_Times] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
Alright - I've got a few minutes to jot down my first thoughts on the Tactical. I've now knocked out two rides on the bike here in Boulder - a Neva loop and a Left Hand Canyon climb. I've included a list of my thoughts below and would be happy to answer any questions. Photos at the end. For reference, I am 6'4" and 168lbs.

Case
- I've had a Trico Iron (2 bike) and Swift Carbon (soft case) previously. Both required significant disassembly of the front end, which while fairly straight forward with the Speed Concept did take some mechanical know-how. I bet I could get the Tactical packed/unpacked in under 3 minutes with a few rounds under my belt in the Premier case. Maybe a good video challenge!
- Holds 3 wheels

Fit
- Large Tactical seems to fit very similar to an XL Speed Concept (15mm more spacer on Tactical)
- More cockpit reach available with the L Tactical compared to the XL Speed Concept
- Stack adjustment is stupidly simple. Spacers have slots for the Di2 wire so its just a matter of adding/removing spacers and selecting the correct bolt length (spacer stack + 30mm). Bolts for all stack combinations provided.
- Seat post angle on the Tactical appears slacker than the Speed Concept. I've found I am very close to the max seat post angle, but I also ride a very forward rotated position (>82 deg). This was also the case on the Speed Concept but it didn't look quite as extreme. Only drawback from this has been the inability to use my desired XLab Delta 225 on the Tactical. I might try to 3D print something unless someone knows of a mount compatible with the "slot" style seat post.

Basebar
- Stays fixed for travel (4 bolts to remove extensions)
- Very clean
- Brake hood extensions are "short", but allow you to rest your palms on the fat part of the base bar in the hoods which I really liked. The one draw back was that on the steeps up Left Hand out of the saddle I could only wrap ~3 fingers completely around the extension.

Handling
- Tactical feels very stable at speed. Confidence inspiring for cornering and descending in the aerobars (49mph cornering in aero today).
- Felt a little more wind push than my previous SC + ENVE 7.8 setup. P-88 front wheel is 20mm deeper. I will be running the ENVE 7.8 front at some point for comparison sake.
- Climbed very nicely on moderate slopes, felt a tad sluggish out the saddle on the steep slopes (no light weight road bike surge)
- Holds speed very nicely into the flats (combo of aero, disc rear and stability probably)

Brakes
- Strong braking overall. I had no problem locking the wheels up coming back into town when a truck pulled out in front of me.
- Modulation isn't on disc brake or STI level, but on par or exceeds all my other TT/Tri bike references
- Super easy adjust (same as SC). 2 or 2.5mm allen moves brake pads in and out independently.

Flat Kit
- Dan addressed this above. I had some difficulty with the flat kit as well. Fix in progress
- A quick note for those setting up a bike w/o a flat kit - the seat post flat kit bolts will need to be removed for seat post installation and cannot be installed with the flat kit acting as a "spacer"

Powermeter
- Upgraded to a Pioneer dual-sided.
- Pleasantly surprised with the blue matched Pioneer cover
- Reads right in the middle of my previous 10w P2M/Wahoo Kickr discrepancy. Works for me.
Quote Reply
Re: Premier Tactical [dkennison] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
Saw one in the race here in Tremblant yesterday, have to admit it was very nice looking, nicer than the couple of Canyon Speedmax's I saw. The integrated rear storage box flows very nice with the frame.
Quote Reply
Re: Premier Tactical [SBRcanuck] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
Thank you. You will be seeing a lot of Premier Tactical bikes at upcoming races throughout the US, Canada and UK.

Dan Kennison

facebook: @triPremierBike
http://www.PremierBike.com
http://www.PositionOneSports.com
Quote Reply
Re: Premier Tactical [JTolandTRI] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
Another Race Report.

Dan,

I purchased the Premier Tactical 1.0 from you with the hopes of getting it in time to use it for my big race of the season. This was Ironman Mont-Tremblant. I placed my order a little late and it was going. However, you worked very hard and got my bike to me last Tuesday afternoon. I put my new bike together but it was too late to do anything but ride a little on the trainer. I thought I had the fit pretty close and I went to bed. Wednesday I had planned to drive from Oswego, NY to Mont-Tremblant. I had already packed my Felt DA in the truck. I went out and got a ten mile ride in on the new bike. I was immediately impressed. The ride was super smooth. The new smaller crank size was an excellent change. I felt very connected to the bike. My power seemed to easily pour into the machine. After the ride, I new I had set the aerobar elbow pads too tight. I corrected that fit and rode just a little more to see if I improved the comfort. The answer was yes. I packed the Tactical along with my DA, loaded the rest of the truck and headed for Canada. Thursday I go out on the course for a preview. I rode too long, but I was feeling so good on the Tactical that I couldn't help it. I had to make one seat adjustment when I got back to my house rental. That ride on the course was so different than the previous ride I had completed on my Felt. The shifting on the Tactical is so smooth. I was always in the correct gear. My new position on this Tactical is much more aggressive than my Felt. That more aggressive position did not cause discomfort. The wheels I have are extremely similar to those you include. I am riding a FLO 90 on the front and a Flo Disc for the rear. I do this for the metal breaking surface I am most comfortable with. The large profile of the wheels did not present any handling issues different than I was already aware of on my Felt. In fact, I felt more stable on the Tactical. I was in control of the machine at all speeds I rode and in each turn. All of this made me even more excited than when I first got the bike. On Friday, I set up the bike for the race with a new BTB Aero bottle from Xlab, a profile design bento box. I did not add any bottle cages on the frame.
Sunday was race day. I completed the swim and then the long run to T-1. My goal was for a fast T-1. I completed that and got going on the Tactical. I knew my heart rate was higher than I wanted so I tried to go easy on the power. I was keeping the power down and my heart rate was settling in. Doing this surprised me as my speed was not dropping. I kept riding along and the power was where I wanted it. My speed was continuing to stay above where I thought it would be. The other thing that I was realizing was how comfortable I was. As the miles ticked away, I had no discomfort. The Tactical had several different, more aggressive measurements than my Felt and I was worried I would suffer from no ride time on the Tactical leading into the race. That was not the case. This course had three U-turns at the end of out & back portions. The Tactical turned around those without any problems. After 112 miles of riding, I felt really good. Here is my ride:
https://connect.garmin.com/.../activity/1932821297
I have not ridden since the race Sunday. I traveled back home Monday and was back to work Tuesday. I can't wait to get back on the bike and really ride hard.

Thanks,

Ed

Dan Kennison

facebook: @triPremierBike
http://www.PremierBike.com
http://www.PositionOneSports.com
Quote Reply
Re: Premier Tactical [dkennison] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
Ahhhh! I need more pictures - and close-ups!!
Quote Reply
Re: Premier Tactical [tobrien] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
Here are a few more!

I've got the bike setup on the trainer next to me. Happy to snap any close-ups of interest.















You can also find some more pictures of the bike, future designs, and soon to be released products on the Premier Facebook page or Instagram:

Facebook

Instagram
Last edited by: JTolandTRI: Aug 25, 17 8:49
Quote Reply
Re: Premier Tactical [dkennison] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
Dan, apologies if this was addressed elsewhere, but do you foresee offering an XL frame?

the world's still turning? >>>>>>> the world's still turning
Quote Reply
Re: Premier Tactical [Callin'] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
Hi Callin' -

Dan will chime in with a better development outlook, but the next big step is an XS. Comparing the Tactical to a line-up such as the Speed Concept, I would say that the Tactical is really shifted up a half to full size. I was "maxed" for reach and near max for seat post on an XL Speed Concept, but fit comfortably on a L Tactical with reach and seat post to spare. I run approximately 40mm of spacers on both bikes. The Tactical does have a long and low geometry compared to most bikes, but the fit guide will allow you to compare to your current setup.

Tactical Geometry Chart

For reference (on a L Tactical):
Height - 6'4"
Inseam - 38"
Stack - 649
Reach - 513 (center of pad)
Quote Reply
Re: Premier Tactical [JTolandTRI] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
Damn, that aerobar is something special. The way the stem streamlines into the top tube is also really slick looking. Thanks for uploading the pics and the ride report a few posts up.

Matt
Quote Reply
Re: Premier Tactical [Pun_Times] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
The newer version is much better as it gives you a better set up option.
Quote Reply

Prev Next